Image reproduction devices such as a printer, a photocopier and a facsimile machine require constant maintenance. One aspect of the maintenance includes a constant supply of consumable material such as an image-carrying medium and an image-recording medium. For example, over an ordinary course of image reproduction, paper and toner have to be replenished in a photo copier. Another aspect of the maintenance includes replacement of certain parts of the image reproduction device. These certain parts are generally designed to be replaced after a predetermined amount of image reproduction. For example, a photoreceptor is to be replaced in a photocopier after a predetermined amount of copying. In order to facilitate the above described maintenance, certain prior art replacement cartridges included a combination of elements so that the replacement simultaneously replenishes a consumable material and replaces a part.
Under the above described replacement concept, three are at least two groups of replacement cartridges. One group of replacement cartridges is designed for ink jet printers and includes a ink jet head as well as ink supply. In other words, as soon as the ink supply is exhausted, by replacing the cartridge, the ink is replenished and the ink jet head is also replaced. The other group of replacement cartridges is designed for electrophoto-imaging devices and includes a process unit such as a photoreceptor and a developer as well as developer material. Similarly, as soon as the developer is exhausted, the developer is replenished and the process unit is also replaced. For example, the second group of replacement cartridges is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publications Hei 8-160841 and Hei 8-179629 as well as Japanese Patent Hei 5-19541.
The above described prior art replacement cartridges nonetheless usually waste a residual life of the replacement hardware part. This is because the hardware part generally outlasts a supply portion of the replacement cartridge. In other words, a capacity of the supply is limited due to the size of the replacement cartridge, and the supply is exhausted before the replacement hardware needs to be replaced. The overall size of the replacement cartridges is limited especially for a portable or desktop image reproduction devices. To avoid such a wasteful replacement, it is desired that the replacement cartridges for image reproduction devices need to be improved.